Eremophila retropila

Last updated

Eremophila retropila
Status DECF P1.svg
Priority One — Poorly Known Taxa (DEC)
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Scrophulariaceae
Genus: Eremophila
Species:
E. retropila
Binomial name
Eremophila retropila

Eremophila retropila is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect, spreading shrub with hairy, greyish leaves crowded at the ends of the branches, and lilac or violet-coloured flowers which are white inside.

Contents

Description

Eremophila retropila is a shrub which grows to a height of 1.8 m (6 ft). The branches and leaves are covered with a dense layer of simple greyish-white hairs. The hairs on the branches are long and curve downwards. The leaves are crowded near the ends of the branches, are linear to elliptic in shape, mostly 15–32 mm (0.6–1 in) long, 3–4.5 mm (0.1–0.2 in) wide and appear felty due to the covering of greyish hairs. [2] [3]

The flowers are borne singly in leaf axils on densely hairy stalks, 9.5–11.5 mm (0.4–0.5 in) long. There are 5, green to dark purple, densely hairy sepals which are linear to lance-shaped and about 9–13 mm (0.4–0.5 in) long. The petals are 16–21 mm (0.6–0.8 in) long and are joined at their lower end to form a tube. The petal tube is violet or lilac-coloured and white inside with small violet spots. The petal tube and lobes are hairy on the outside, the lobes are mostly glabrous on the inside but the tube is inside of the tube is filled with woolly hairs. The 4 stamens are fully enclosed in the petal tube. Flowering occurs from August to September and the fruits which follow are dry, oval-shaped when mature and 5.5–6.5 mm (0.2–0.3 in) long. [2] [3]

Taxonomy and naming

This species was first formally described by Robert Chinnock in 2007 and the description was published in Eremophila and Allied Genera: A Monograph of the Plant Family Myoporaceae. [4] The specific epithet (retropila) is derived from the Latin words retro meaning "back" or "backwards" [5] :474 and pilus meaning "hair" or "felt", [5] :174 referring to the bent hairs on the branches. [2]

Distribution and habitat

Eremophila retropila grows on stony flats near Meekatharra [3] in the Murchison biogeographic region. [6]

Conservation

This eremophila is classified as "Priority One" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife, [6] meaning that it is known from only one or a few locations which are potentially at risk. [7]

Related Research Articles

Eremophila dendritica is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to the south of Australia. It is a low, shrub with many tangled branches. Its branches, leaves and flowers are densely covered with hairs giving them a felty texture.

Eremophila eversa is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to a restricted area of Western Australia. It is known from only one plant, now thought to have died. It is a small shrub with small leaves and hairy purple to lilac-coloured flowers.

Eremophila fasciata, commonly known as spaghetti eremophila, is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to a restricted area of Western Australia. It is a densely-foliaged shrub with grey, felty leaves and blue to violet-coloured flowers clustered at the tips of its branches.

<i>Eremophila foliosissima</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila foliosissima, commonly known as poverty bush, is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a small, erect, densely foliaged shrub with long, narrow, hairy leaves and mauve to purple flowers. It is similar to Eremophila gilesii but is more dense and rounded, has more crowded leaves and has different hairs on the flowers.

Eremophila hispida is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Queensland. It is a small shrub with narrow, hairy, clustered leaves, with violet to purple flowers and is restricted to a small area in central Queensland.

<i>Eremophila jucunda</i> Species of plant

Eremophila jucunda is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a small to medium-sized shrub with hairy branches and leaves, lance-shaped to egg-shaped leaves and cream-coloured, lilac or purple flowers.

<i>Eremophila labrosa</i> Species of plant endemic to Western Australia

Eremophila labrosa is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a shrub with many hairy branches arising from near ground level, narrow, hooked leaves and mauve and blue flowers.

<i>Eremophila lachnocalyx</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila lachnocalyx, commonly known as woolly-sepaled eremophila or woolly-calyxed eremophila, is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect, spreading shrub with densely hairy, greyish leaves but its most distinctive feature is its densely woolly sepals.

Eremophila lanata is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a small shrub with small, hairy leaves, densely hairy sepals and lilac to pinkish flowers.

<i>Eremophila malacoides</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila malacoides, commonly known as frontage poverty bush, is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a shrub with grey-green foliage, densely hairy leaves, and usually lilac to purple flowers but a yellow flowered form also occurs.

<i>Eremophila ovata</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila ovata is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to the Northern Territory. It is a small, spreading, rounded shrub with hairy branches and leaves and pink or purple flowers which are white inside.

Eremophila pendulina is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a tall, spindly, weeping shrub with narrow leaves and purple, mauve or white flowers in autumn and early spring.

<i>Eremophila punctata</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila punctata is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect shrub with sticky young branches and leaves due to the presence of resin. Its small leaves usually have a few blunt teeth near their ends and flowers which are usually lilac-coloured. It is a distinctive and widespread species.

<i>Eremophila pungens</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila pungens is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is an erect, sticky shrub with broad, serrated-edged leaves which end in a sharp spine and purple or violet flowers.

<i>Eremophila recurva</i> Species of plant endemic to Australia

Eremophila recurva is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Australia. It is a shrub with hairy grey leaves, large grey sepals and blue, mauve or lilac flowers.

Eremophila revoluta is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a low, dense shrub with small, hairy leaves, very hairy sepals and mauve or purple petals.

<i>Eremophila rhegos</i> Species of plant endemic to Western Australia

Eremophila rhegos is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect shrub with densely hairy leaves and branches and blue, mauve, purple or white flowers.

<i>Eremophila rigens</i> Species of plant endemic to Western Australia

Eremophila rigens is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect shrub with long, stiff, glabrous leaves and pale lilac-coloured to white flowers.

<i>Eremophila ternifolia</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila ternifolia, commonly known as Wongan eremophila is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is a low, many-branched, shrub with short, pointed leaves and small lilac-coloured or mauve flowers.

<i>Eremophila warnesii</i> Species of flowering plant

Eremophila warnesii is a flowering plant in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae and is endemic to Western Australia. It is an erect, compact shrub with furry leaves, hairy sepals and blue to mauve petals. It is a little-known species, named after the founder of the Eremophila Study Group.

References

  1. "Eremophila retropila". Australian Plant Census. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 Chinnock, R.J. (Bob) (2007). Eremophila and allied genera : a monograph of the plant family Myoporaceae (1st ed.). Dural, NSW: Rosenberg. pp. 518–519. ISBN   9781877058165.
  3. 1 2 3 Brown, Andrew; Buirchell, Bevan (2011). A field guide to the eremophilas of Western Australia (1st ed.). Hamilton Hill, W.A.: Simon Nevill Publications. p. 239. ISBN   9780980348156.
  4. "Eremophila retropila". APNI. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
  5. 1 2 Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press.
  6. 1 2 "Eremophila retropila". FloraBase . Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
  7. "Conservation codes for Western Australian Flora and Fauna" (PDF). Government of Western Australia Department of Parks and Wildlife. Retrieved 7 March 2016.